Synopsis

After decades as a Navy aviator, Pete "Maverick" Mitchell returns to TOPGUN as an instructor. He must train an elite group of graduates for a nearly impossible strike mission while confronting the emotional consequences of his past, including his complicated relationship with the son of his late friend and former wingman, Goose.

Factoids & Trivia

• The aerial sequences used real Navy F/A-18 Super Hornets rather than relying entirely on computer-generated aircraft. The Navy charged the production $11,374 per flight hour for the jets and pilots.

• The performers portraying pilots completed an intensive three-month flight-training program designed by Tom Cruise. They learned to tolerate high G-forces and to operate cameras, lighting, and sound equipment inside the cockpit.

• Six IMAX-certified Sony Venice 6K cameras were installed inside an F/A-18 cockpit. The actors had to operate the equipment themselves because there was no room for a conventional camera crew.

• More than 800 hours of aerial footage were recorded, exceeding the combined aerial footage shot for the three films in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.

• The production spent more than a year working with Navy personnel to develop safe camera mounts and capture authentic cockpit imagery.

• The film was dedicated to Tony Scott, the director of the 1986 original, who died in 2012 while an early sequel was still being developed.

• Its release was delayed several times, including because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Streaming services reportedly pursued the film, but it was kept for an exclusive theatrical release.

• Top Gun: Maverick received six Academy Award nominations and won for Best Sound. It became the highest-grossing film of 2022 and the highest-grossing movie in Paramount Pictures history.